My wife and I took our first cruise on the Explorer of the Seas. We seem to be the minority who were quite dissatisfied with the overall experience.

Worst of all was the 50 min. full body massage. The massage therapist at first seemed interested in my health. She talked about toxins in my body that she needed to work out. It was very painful not relaxing at all. She did not stop talking the entire time. Then while I was still naked(and vulnerable) she tried to push her $90 algae pills on me for detoxifying, which explains why she was so talkative about my toxins during the massage. This was really upsetting to my wife and I. She had the same experience with her massage therapist. We’ve had full body massages before, so we know how you are supposed to feel afterward.

We also had poor service from the stateroom attendant. I’ve had better maids in hotels. She didn’t clean our room in the morning on several occasions. I asked for Ice to be delivered in the morning and in the afternoon. Only two days was ice delivered twice.

We went to guest services to complain about the service we received and they said “well it is a big ship and it’s hard to service everybody properly” like I should be satisfied with the short end of the stick. She didn’t offer anything as a token or gesture to show sorrow or concern for the troubles we had.

The food! We were quite disappointed with the food quality overall. If you ate in the dining room you had it best. If you chose to eat in the windjammer buffet line style then too bad for you. I’ve eaten better a “Old Country Buffet” which I hate. The food was generally the same every time. Breakfast foods were the worst. Unripe cantaloupe and melon, soggy waffles, poor tasting and hard pancakes, and all those pastries that were worse than what I pick up in the local supermarket on Sunday morning here at home. The café promenade was decent, but would have been much more inviting if there was a variety. They had one type of muffin, two types of doughnuts, and maybe a pastry or two. No quiches, or pies. Don’t expect the coffee to taste too great. After 4 creamers it started to lighten up a little!

In the Aquarium we waited a half an hour for someone to ask us if we wanted a drink. On another occasion we waited a whole hour and never were asked if we needed a drink, so we left.

We had nice entertainment. Greg Shepard the pianist was who we enjoyed the most. We relaxed at Dizzy’s with Elijah who was a great waiter.

All that said, my wife and I will never cruise again!

Save your money. Get a nice hotel and eat in upscale restaurants. You will have better food and probably come out ahead financially.

My wife and I took our first cruise on the Explorer of the Seas. We seem to be the minority who were quite dissatisfied with the overall experience.

Worst of all was the 50 min. full body massage. The massage therapist at first seemed interested in my health. She talked about toxins in my body that she needed to work out. It was very painful not relaxing at all. She did not stop talking the entire time. Then while I was still naked(and vulnerable) she tried to push her $90 algae pills on me for detoxifying, which explains why she was so talkative about my toxins during the massage. This was really upsetting to my wife and I. She had the same experience with her massage therapist. We’ve had full body massages before, so we know how you are supposed to feel afterward.

We also had poor service from the stateroom attendant. I’ve had better maids in hotels. She didn’t clean our room in the morning on several occasions. I asked for Ice to be delivered in the morning and in the afternoon. Only two days was ice delivered twice.

We went to guest services to complain about the service we received and they said “well it is a big ship and it’s hard to service everybody properly” like I should be satisfied with the short end of the stick. She didn’t offer anything as a token or gesture to show sorrow or concern for the troubles we had.

The food! We were quite disappointed with the food quality overall. If you ate in the dining room you had it best. If you chose to eat in the windjammer buffet line style then too bad for you. I’ve eaten better a “Old Country Buffet” which I hate. The food was generally the same every time. Breakfast foods were the worst. Unripe cantaloupe and melon, soggy waffles, poor tasting and hard pancakes, and all those pastries that were worse than what I pick up in the local supermarket on Sunday morning here at home. The café promenade was decent, but would have been much more inviting if there was a variety. They had one type of muffin, two types of doughnuts, and maybe a pastry or two. No quiches, or pies. Don’t expect the coffee to taste too great. After 4 creamers it started to lighten up a little!

In the Aquarium we waited a half an hour for someone to ask us if we wanted a drink. On another occasion we waited a whole hour and never were asked if we needed a drink, so we left.

We had nice entertainment. Greg Shepard the pianist was who we enjoyed the most. We relaxed at Dizzy’s with Elijah who was a great waiter.

All that said, my wife and I will never cruise again!

Save your money. Get a nice hotel and eat in upscale restaurants. You will have better food and probably come out ahead financially.

HI THERE,
SORRY TO HEAR THAT YOUR CRUISE WASN T SATISFACTORY TO YOU NOR YOUR WIFE.
BUT SURELY , THESE ARE ONLY MINOR PROBLEMS
YOU HAD TO SUFFER.
WHAT DID YOU EXPECT BEING ON A SHIP WITH ALMOST 2000 PASSENGERS...?
5*TREATMENT ,THE SHIP FOR YOURSELF AND 24 HOUR BUTLER SERVICE.....??
YOU ALWAYS GET WHAT YOU PAY FOR!!
HOPE YOU HAVE MORE SUCCESSFUL HOLIDAYS IN FUTURE
HAPPY NEW YEAR
TEDDY

Sorry cruising didn't meet your expectations. Luckily, hundreds of thousands don't agree with you, or we wouldn't have the opportunity to be pampered as we've become used to having. We did 4 cruises last year, with 3 scheduled this year. A gentleman on our last cruise won the award for the person that has sailed the most. He had sailed for 657 days with just Princess, let alone what he might have done on others. We also do a lot of land traveling, and found the Celebrity Constellation this past Summer, to be "the best" and cleanest place that you could ever imagine. The food was outstanding, and at a table for 8 over 14 days, 1 couple had to send steaks back 1 night, as they were too tough. 1 other couple the
same night had steaks with no problems. Could it be that you just expected way too much from your room steward? I'm not sure how many staterooms they have to take care of on RCL, but we've experienced stewards taking care of from 14-20 rooms, with no help on a lot of occasions. We love cruising, and will continue to do so as long as our health permits.

quote:Originally posted by wagado:
In the Aquarium we waited a half an hour for someone to ask us if we wanted a drink. On another occasion we waited a whole hour and never were asked if we needed a drink, so we left.

Personally, and this may be rather telling about my needs and priorities, but I won't wait an hour anywhere for a drink. Not on a cruise ship, a hotel bar, or the corner tavern. Sometimes you've just got to speak up, get someone's attention, and then politely ask for what you want. If the situation is exceptionally bad, find someone in charge and complain, again, politely.

I wholeheartedly believe your experience was an aberration. The cruise industry is based on service and satisfaction. If the poor service you got was the norm, the industry would not be the multi-billion-dollar phenomenon it is today.

You didn't say one word about the presumably beautiful places you visited, nor about the experience of being out on the open ocean, sailing on a true marvel of modern technology. There's an old saying about not being able to see the forest because of all the trees in the way; try to be a bit more forgiving next time, if there is a next time.

Don't get me wrong here people! I give RCCL credit for running a business with much success in drawing in customers. Time share salespeople do excellent in selling thousands of people on timeshares that are not worth near what they sell for.

1. What people have come to expect from a cruise and what people have told me about cruises was not the case this particular week

2. Most of what my travel agent told me about cruising did not turn out to be true

3. When I voiced my concerns and disappointments with RCCL no one seem to give a Damn!

We have experience excellent food and excellent service from many resturants and establishments. This was far below many of those experiences.

I wish i could get my money back and go where my business is appreciated!

I have received many emails with simalar complaints about our cruise week. The people who sat at our table had been on 6 or 7 Carnival cruises and indicated they to were quite suprised over the lack of good service.

quote:Originally posted by wagado:
So I take offense to the comment that this is all "an aberration"!

This isn't about taking or giving offense, but I really think you (and possibly others on your same sailing) had an unusual experience.

Go back to the reviews and read the review from the previous week - those people loved their trip! The review prior to that was written by people who also loved their trip.

Maybe there was some strange vibe among the crew the week you were aboard, I don't know. Maybe your expectations were a tad high, who knows. As a one-time cruiser anxiously looking forward to my second journey, you're not going to dissuade me.

I'd be curious to know what happened when you voiced your concerns to members of the ship's staff - anyone in a position of authority. Did anyone offer to make right any of your problems? Did you take them up on their offers? I find it hard to believe that a big-business hospitality company like Royal Caribbean would give you the brush-off.

That having been said, there's another old saying about opinions which ends with "everyone's got one". I'm sorry you had such a rotten experience, but your opinon remains the distinct minority. Cruising is evidently not for everyone, I guess you're one of them. Sorry we misled you.

I was on the Explorer Dec 7 and was VERY impressed with her. The ship is absolutely breathtaking and I never once encountered a member of the staff that was not friendly and attentive. I thought the food in the dining room was excellent. Our waiter's and cabin steward were all great also. I would highly recommend this ship to anyone thinking about booking a cruise. Sorry that you did not have a good time.